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The list of late NFL players who had the brain condition known as CTE grew by one Wednesday, and this time it was a player who will forever be linked with the Dolphins, even though he never played for them.

To Dolphins fans, Stabler will be remembered for his “Sea of Hands” pass that resulted in an 8-yard touchdown reception by running back Clarence Davis in the 1974 playoffs. It didn’t just give Oakland a 28-26 victory over Miami, it ended the Dolphins’ dynasty and changed the fortunes of the franchise.

The Dolphins, remember, were seeking their third consecutive Super Bowl championship amid the knowledge that when the season was over, stars Larry Csonka, Jim Kiick and Paul Warfield were bolting to the World Football League.

The dynasty crumbled to the extent that it took the Dolphins four seasons just to get back in the playoffs and eight years to return to the Super Bowl. Of course, they have not won a Super Bowl since.

The game, which featured a dozen Hall of Famers, was so tense that the late NBC announcer Curt Gowdy of Palm Beach called it “the greatest game I have ever seen.”

The Raiders scored on a 72-yard pass to Cliff Branch with 4:37 left for a 21-19 lead.

The Dolphins responded with a 23-yard touchdown run by Benny Malone. Problem was, with Miami’s defense gassed, there was a strange feeling the Dolphins’ four-play, 68-yard drive was too quick. It left 2:08 for Stabler to work his magic.

Work he did, with one of the most-replayed touchdowns ever. Vince Costello, Miami’s unpopular defensive coordinator, would not blitz, yet defensive end Vern Den Herder burst through to wrap up Stabler by the legs (long before Jeff Van Gundy and Alonzo Mourning had a difference of opinion).

As he fell, Stabler lobbed a pass toward the end zone, where Davis was swarmed by Mike Kolen, Larry Ball and Tim Foley, yet still managed to haul it in.

Carl Taseff, a Dolphins assistant coach, said it was the only time he saw Don Shula cry after a loss.

“There might have been a few tears in my eyes after that one,” Shula told The Post for a 2001 story.

Typical of his gunslinger mentality, Stabler looked back on the play in a way most would not.

“It was a dumb throw, one I probably never should have made,” he said. “It’s the one pass I get asked about the most, and the worst pass I’ve ever thrown. It probably should have been intercepted.”

Perhaps a more upbeat postscript to this story will be written Saturday, when a group of selectors meet in the Bay Area during Super Bowl week. Stabler again is a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.